Watching the Syrian army advance on Saudi-U.S.-Turkey-backed rebel forces in Aleppo, the U.S. begs Russia once again to call for a ceasefire to allow opposition forces to regroup. Since the Syrian war began March 11, 2011, Saudi Arabia has funded rebel groups to topple the Shiite government of Syrian President Bashar al-Assad. After the disastrous Iraq War that opened the floodgates of Islamic terrorism in the Middle East, you’d think the U.S. would have learned a valuable lesson about toppling Mideast dictators. Yet the U.S. backed the uprising in Tunisia that toppled the government of Zine El Abidine Bin Ali, supported the fall of Egypt’s Hosni Mubarak and aided the overthrow of Libya’s Col Muammar Gaddafi. In each case, backed by President Barack Obama and former Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton, more death, destruction and terrorism flooded the Mideast.
Today’s attempt by Barack to join with Russia mirrors the failed ceasefire May 7, allowing Saudi-U.S.-Turkey-backed rebel groups to rearm to once again to topple al-Assad. Putin threw a monkey wrench into Saudi-U.S.-Turkey’s plans to topple al-Assad when he ordered the Russian air force Sept. 30, 2015 to defend the Syrian government. Putin warned the U.S. General Assembly Sept. 28, 2015 that toppling al-Assad would only cause more Mideast chaos. Unable to get Saudi Arabia to stand down, Obama and Secretary of State John Kerry have added to the worst humanitarian crisis since WWII. With some 290,000 dead, more than 11 million displaced from Syria into neighboring countries and Europe, the Saudi-U.S.-Turkey-backed proxy war drove the U.K June 23 out of the European Union. Now Obama, once again, pleads with Russia to stop the Syrian army from wiping out rebel groups.
Neither Putin nor his Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov can understand the U.S. backing of Saudi Arabia’s proxy war against al-Assad. Obama and Kerry have practically stood on their heads trying to convince Putin to toss al-Assad under the bus. Putin and Lavrov have tried diplomacy only to watch the U.S. side with Saudis and Turks to topple al-Assad. Speaking about the May 7 temporary ceasefire, Lavrov told the press in Yekaterinburg, Russia with German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier past ceasefire have given Saudi-U.S.-Turkey-backed rebel groups time to rearm. Lavrov agrees with the principle of getting humanitarian aid to civilians caught in the crossfire. German spokesman Steffen Seibert said hardships faced in Aleppo could not be alleviated by temporary ceasefires. Western officials blame the ongoing Syrian War President Bashar al-Assad.
Al-Assad has battled forcefully to prevent Syria from facing the same fate as Tunisia, Egypt and Libya, whose dictators fell during the 2011 Saudi-backed “Arab Spring.” U.S. and European Union officials don’t get that a power like Syria has a right to defend its sovereignty and territorial integrity. Putin has reminded Obama and Kerry on many occasions that he backs Syria’s right to sovereignty against foreign terror groups seeking to topple Damascus. Putin knows that the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria [ISIS] and al-Qaeda’s Jabhat al-Nusra Front, both enemies of the U.S. and EU, also seek to topple al-Assad. Putin can’t figure out why the U.S. and EU would join terrorists fighting to topple the Syrian regime. Putin wants to establish better relations with the West but doesn’t understand why the U.S. seeks to topple al-Assad. Russian wants to work on humanitarian relief without toppling al-Assad.
Putin finds himself caught between a-rock-and-a-hard-place trying to placate the West while backing al-Assad’s regime. “Step by step, we are nearing an arrangement. “I’m talking exclusively about Aleppo, that would allow us to find common ground and start fighting together for bringing peace to the territory,” said Russian Defense Minister Sergei Shoigu. Obama and Kerry have criticized Putin for going after Saudi-U.S.-Turkey-backed rebel groups, when insisting they’re going after ISIS and al-Qaeda. Controlling the western part of Aleppo since 2012, Saudi-U.S.-Turkey-backed rebels seek nothing short of regime change in Damascus. Syrian forces loyal to al-Assad claim rebel forces have been driven out of Aleppo. Calling the battle of Aleppo “one of the most devastating urban conflicts in modern times,” the International Committee for the Red Cross called for an urgent ceasefire.
Calling on al-Assad to honor a ceasefire, German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s spokesman Steffen Seibert called on Russia to influence al-Assad. Whatever the humanitarian disaster in Aleppo, it’s time for the Saudis to accept failure and call for a comprehensive ceasefire. Nearly six years of proxy war hasn’t toppled al-Assad nor convinced the Saudis, U.S. and Turkey to stop the Syrian War. Obama and Merkel should be putting the Saudis on notice that the proxy war can no longer continue. When you consider the Syrian War’s disastrous consequences, including pushing the U.K out of the EU, it’s imperative the war ends. U.S. and EU officials must come to their senses and work with Putin to tell the Saudis to stop funding rebel groups to topple al-Assad. If all parties want a lasting peace, it’s high time to tell the Saudis and Turks to stop funding the Syrian War.
